Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to a temporary pause in fighting over Eid Al Fitr, after weeks of deadly attacks between the countries.
The halt in fighting, pushed by Saudi Arabia and Turkey, is to start at midnight on Thursday and end at midnight on Tuesday.
Pakistan's Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said his country made the move "in good faith and in keeping with the Islamic norms". But he added that “in case of any cross-border attack, drone attack or any terrorist incident inside Pakistan, [operations] shall immediately resume with renewed intensity”.
In response, Afghanistan’s Taliban government said it would stop military operations against Pakistan temporarily. The UN welcomed the announcement and said it hoped the suspension of fighting would be extended. "That's a welcome development," spokesman Farhan Haq said at a media conference. "We hope that the suspension during Eid will be extended.”
He added that the UN condemned the "air strike in Kabul, Afghanistan, on March 16, which reportedly resulted in the death and injury of civilians at a hospital".
The Afghan Taliban government has said more than 400 people were killed and 265 injured in the strike, which it said hit a drug rehabilitation centre. People and staff at the centre were praying before the attack took place.
Pakistan denies it deliberately struck the centre, saying it had “precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure”. It accuses Kabul of harbouring extremist groups that have carried out cross-border attacks on Pakistani territory.
Afghanistan responded with border raids and drone attacks. The Kabul attack is the deadliest in the conflict between the countries, which began more than three weeks ago. On Wednesday, a mass funeral was held for the victims, with coffins carried from ambulances by Afghan Red Crescent Society volunteers.
